AUDIOLOGICAL HAZARDS OF PROLONGED TELEVISION WATCHING AT YOUNGER AGES

Introduction: Frequent complaints of poor attention, delayed language development, abnormal behaviors and even diminished hearing were encountered lately among parents of young children presented to Audiology and Phonology units. Careful history taking revealed long periods of TV watching as yong as , in some cases, 3 months old. What exactly did this do to their brains and if it is reversible is what we are seeking for.
Methods: 50 children with age range from 2 to 3 years presented to the audiology unit complaining of hearing problems or referred from phonology unit for hearing assessment as a an investigation necessary for DLD complaining of language problems and/ or abnormal communication behavior.
All parents were subjected to
 Full history taking.
 Questionnaire.
All children were subjected to:
 Full audiological assessment (Tympanometry, ABR).
 MMN.
 Remediation for three months.
Counseling of the parents was performed then retesting was done after 3 months using the same questionnaire and children were subjected to MMN and ABR.
Results: Both study and control groups were age matched. IQ assessment revealed average intelligence in both study and control groups. A statistically significant difference was found between study and control groups as regards scale of auditory behaviors questionnaire. A statistically significant difference was found also between tham as regards Modified checklist for Autism in toddlers.
Study group showed also, statistically significant prolonged latency and significantly lower amplitude.
Conclusion: Learning through electronic media is not suitable for children before preschool age. In fact it has many adverse effects on socialization, cognitive function, attention and memory butting the child in different categories of auditory processing disorders and even autism and has adverse effects on language skills. So learning through real life situation is more important at earlier ages.